Maryville HIST122 2022 March Discussions Latest (Full)

HIST122 History from 1877 to Present

Week 1 Discussion

Industrialization after the Civil War

For This Discussion Prompt:

Please read the Canvas content, as well as the assigned readings for Week 1. Hyperlinks to the 3 assigned documents for this assignment can be found below:

"William Graham Sumner on the Social Gospel"

"Henry George, Progress and Poverty"

"Andrew Carnegie, The Gospel of Wealth"

 Based on what you read, please address the following questions:

Who best understood the reasons for poverty in the late nineteenth century?  Whose opinions do you most disagree with?

 

HIST122 History from 1877 to Present

Week 2 Discussion

What was the so-called "Indian Problem?"

For This Discussion Prompt:

This week, You read two very different descriptions of American Indian life from Chief Joseph of the Nez Perces and President Chester A. Arthur.  Hyperlinks to the documents can be found below:

"Chief Joseph on Indian Affairs"

"Chester A. Arthur on American Indian Policy"

 Based on what you read, answer this question:

Why did so many American Indians suffer from conditions of poverty?  How might those problems be addressed?

 

HIST122 History from 1877 to Present

Week 3 Discussion

The Birth of a Nation

For This Discussion Prompt:

For this week, you were asked to watch a few scenes from the film The Birth of a Nation.  If you haven't watched the movie clip yet, go back to The Birth of a Nation (1915) Canvas page to view the clip.

Based on what you watched, answer these questions:What do you think this movie suggested about the Civil War and reconciliation after the war?  Who were the real enemies in this war?

HIST122 History from 1877 to Present

Week 4 Discussion

The New Deal and Its Discontents

For This Discussion Prompt:

As you've seen so far this week, many in the US were unsatisfied with the New Deal.  Many thought that Roosevelt had not gone far enough to meet the challenges of the Great Depression.  Others thought that Roosevelt had gone too far.

For this discussion, you'll need to read the two previous Canvas pages. The first by Franklin Roosevelt--which presents his justification for what he called his New Deal.  The other--by Herbert Hoover--explains why he thinks that Roosevelt's New Deal betrayed American principles. 

Haven't Read These Pages Yet? Read Them Now!

Franklin Roosevelt's Acceptance Speech 1936

Herbert Hoover on the New Deal

 Once you've read these Canvas pages, answer the following questions in the discussion space below.

Based upon what you read for today, why did Roosevelt feel as though the New Deal preserved freedom in America?

Why did Hoover perceive the New Deal as a threat to freedom in America?

In the end, with whom do you agree?

 

HIST122 History from 1877 to Present

Week 5 Discussion

From Rosie to Lucy

For This Discussion Prompt:

Based upon what you read in After the Fact "Chapter 14: From Rosie to Lucy" and from what you saw from the episode of "I Love Lucy" you watched please address the following questions:

What was it about the mass culture of the 1950s that bothered Betty Friedan?  Would you agree with Friedan's criticisms of the way the mass media presented women in the 1950s?

 

HIST122 History from 1877 to Present

Week 6 Discussion

Differences between Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X

For This Discussion Prompt:

For many in the 1960s--and since--Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X represented polar opposites in the black freedom struggle.  Early in Malcolm X's national career, he referred to Martin Luther King Jr. as "a fool," "a chump," "a traitor," and a number of other names.  For his part, King thought that Malcolm X's movement would never succeed in accomplishing black equality within the United States.  King believed the only possible outcome of Malcolm X's movement would be misery for all Americans but particularly for black Americans.

Clearly the two men disagreed with one another about the black freedom struggle.  They disagreed about the goals of the movement.  They disagreed about how to go about accomplishing their different goals.

For this discussion, you'll need to read the two previous Canvas pages. The first by Martin Luther King, and his work entitled "The Ethical Demands for Integration" from 1963.  Also, read the interview between Malcolm X and A.B. Spellman.

Haven't Read These Pages Yet? Read Them Now!

Martin Luther King, "The Ethical Demands for Integration" 1963

Interview between Malcolm X and A.B. Spellman

Once you've read these Canvas pages, answer the following questions in the discussion space below.

 What were the core differences between Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.?

How were their goals different?

How were their methods different? 

 

HIST122 History from 1877 to Present

Week 7 Discussion

Dewey Burton and "Malaise" in the 1970s

Haven't Read These Pages Yet? Read Them Now!

"Dewey Burton and the White Working Class in the 1970s" found on Canvas.

Once you've read these Canvas pages, answer the following questions in the discussion space below.

Why was Dewey Burton nervous about his future--and his kids' future--in the 1970s?  What made him angry?